Sierra Manning

Name: Manning, Sierra Elizabeth

Gender: Female

Age: Eighteen [18]

Grade: Senior [12th]

School: Bayview Secondary School

Hobbies and Interests: Gossip (celebrity or otherwise), Spirit Club, Concerts, Shopping, Aesthetics, ‘Girl Time’ with Josie, the internet, Interior Decorating

Appearance: Sierra’s senior year was almost solely devoted to self-discovery, a journey that has yet to be completed. Her ‘look’ followed suit and deviated from the outrageous decisions she made in her previous years and everything, more or less, toned down. Her inviting face is the same as it ever was; with pert nose, cute little pout, and big brown eyes. The gap and accompanying lisp that she once hated is still intact, though it’s grown on her with age. Her choices in make-up and skincare have been dramatically overhauled, however. The once vigorous tanning sessions came to a halt when Sierra found a new and suspicious freckle on her middle finger, thus scaring the tan out of her. Sierra retains a shadow of her former makeup regiment, though her ‘raccoon eyes’ aren’t nearly as caked on as they once were. Her once elephantine bouffant of a hairstyle was also a casualty of her new mindset and was chopped and cut into a linear bob and dyed back to her natural caramel color.

Sierra’s fashion is still her own, though she doesn’t go as far out of her way to drape her miniscule (5’2, 103lbs) frame in outlandish clothes as she once did. Bright colors are still found far and wide in her wardrobe, though the level of obnoxious dropped distinctly. On the fateful day she was abducted, Sierra wore a thick-strapped tank top decorated with bold orange and white strips with a lime green spaghetti strap underneath. She paired it with a pair of dark washed skinny jeans and her favorite, not to mention very old and worn, red ballet flats.

Biography: Born November 10th in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania following the grave mistake of forgoing safe sex, Sierra Manning was welcomed warmly into the world by a young couple, Diana Elko and her then boyfriend Robert Manning. Though the lovebirds gave off the aura of a perfect and happy couple, all was not what it seemed. They had been growing apart sometime before Sierra’s birth, but when Diana became pregnant a spark of hope ignited. Both companies tried their hardest to make it work, including Diana giving her newborn Robert’s surname, but the heart wanted what the heart wanted and they split shortly after Sierra’s birth. At first, he tried to stay in his daughter’s life, but interest waned as she got older until it eventually stopped all together- something that did not sit right with Diana. Growing up without a father always seemed normal to Sierra, it wasn’t as if she knew what having a father was like to begin with. Though Diana cared for her daughter with all her heart, there were only so many hours in a day and raising a child as a single parent wasn’t easy. The young mother would oftentimes take double shifts waitressing in order to keep their heads above the water, though this meant leaving Sierra in the care of their neighbor across the hall, Ms. Lucille Beacon- a woman who lost her own daughter at a young age and took the motherless Diana under her own wing. To add to her already busy schedule, Diana started taking online college courses in order to secure a better life for her small family down the road. By the time Sierra was seven, Diana had managed to graduate with honors and was offered an internship with a highly regarded interior design company. Sierra was, once again, spending a large amount of time with Ms. Beacon- whom she now affectionately regarded as ‘Bubba’. Bubba was an important fixture in Sierra’s life and was often passing down gems of knowledge she had accumulated over the years and stories she had from her self-described wild and crazy younger years. She was also the person who introduced the fine art of celebrity watching to Sierra, a hobby that followed her right up to the present. Shortly after Sierra’s ninth birthday, Bubba had retired to St. Paul, Minnesota- leaving an empty place in the small family’s heart.

Sierra’s early school life was bearable at best. She was often the butt of the joke and received a melting pot of nasty nicknames, Gappy and Twerp sticking out vividly in her memories. The torment she received on a daily basis lead to many crying sessions in the bathroom stalls and the eventual distance she put herself at from her classmates. The breaking point of the harassment occurred during swim week in Gym Class and ended in a life-long phobia for Sierra. She hadn’t ever learned to swim, which makes sense given that her closest friend was an aging homebody, and was stuck doing land exercises while her peers enjoyed the water. A repeat offender decided to mess with Sierra once again, though it transcended the regular grade school jabs and insults and made it’s why into pure cruelty. Before she even had to chance to realize what had happened, Sierra was fully underwater thrashing and fruitlessly struggling to keep her head above water. The whole incident lasted roughly ten seconds, but it stayed with her for the rest of her life in the form of hydrophobia.

Diana was rightfully distraught after the incident and felt as if it were her fault, though it wasn’t by any means. It knocked her into a panic, however, and she soon started coddling Sierra and babying her if even the most miniscule of problems occurred- though Sierra obviously didn’t object to the sudden change. Despite having the right intentions in mind, Diana only managed to make Sierra heavily dependent on her for emotional support- something that will only inhibit her as she grows.

Diana applied for a job down in St. Paul shortly afterwards and the small family was delighted when they were able to be close to Bubba once again. They relocated to St. Paul as soon as they could and moved into a large, semi-rundown house with Bubba and live in the same house to the day.

Freshman year was the start of a new life for Sierra. A new optimism for school blossomed within her as the days went on, which is something that never would have happened had they stayed in Philadelphia. The new love for school and all school related events, whether it be School Spirit Day or any little thing she could do to show her pride in her new school, persuaded her to join the Spirit Club- where she met Josie Vernon. Josie was everything Sierra wanted to be and more- strong, caring, confident, the whole shebang. They clicked immediately and have been joined at the hip ever since.

Josie is the person who first inducted Sierra into the scene ‘culture’ and shared her very valuable fashion and attitude advice with her, bonding them together even further. The two girls often lazed around Josie’s room gossiping about classmates or reading about the latest celebrity scandal. Sierra was beyond thrilled to finally have a friend, not to mention one she connected with as if they were one in the same. Senior year remains to be the highlight of Sierra’s eighteen years. The meek, often teased little girl that she used to be bloomed into a social butterfly who never turned down a chance to interact with her peers. That isn’t to say she’s an entirely confident and independent girl, because that is nothing but far from the truth. She’s actively seeking to grow and mature, however- something that obviously didn’t go unnoticed when it came time for Senior Prom. There she stood side by side with Aaron Boismier as Prom Queen and finally felt accomplished. Not to mention she was slated to begin class (interior decoration) at the local community college sometime after graduation, quelling the immense worries she had regarding that subject.

Advantages: Sierra’s incredibly outgoing and easy to get along with, which could earn her some points with her peers. She possesses an artist’s mind, with an overflowing imagination and a large amount of creativity.

Disadvantages: She has no athletic prowess whatsoever and will be easily winded running long distances without a break. Her small frame leaves a lot to be desired, as she can be overpowered with little trouble. The dependency she has with her mother and Josie alike combined with her hydrophobia could easily lead to an early grave.

Designated Number: Female student no. 7

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Designated Weapon: Pepper Spray

Conclusion: I'm tho thorry, G007, but unleth you can find your gal pal, you don't shtand a chance!

'The above biography is as written by Mimi. No edits or alterations to the author's original work have been made.'

Evaluations
Handled by: Mimi, lovebirdjo, ZombiexCreame

Kills: None

Killed By: Josie Vernon

Collected Weapons: Pepper Spray (Assigned Weapon)

Allies: Josie Vernon, Omar Burton (Presumably)

Enemies: None

Mid-game Evaluation:

Post-Game Evaluation:

Memorable Quotes:

Other/Trivia

 * Sierra was voted the first Character of the Month for V4.
 * Sierra was put up for adoption by her original handler, Mimi, and starting from was But I Might Die Tonight was adopted by lovebirdjo.
 * Sierra's death was shown in the prologue of V5.

Threads
The Past:
 * Sweetness

Pre-game:
 * Sparse
 * The Alibi
 * I Know Where The Summer Goes
 * Decisions, Decisions

V4:
 * We Are The Sleepyheads
 * It's hard to walk tall when you're small
 * But I Might Die Tonight
 * Down the Road, Not Across the Street
 * In My Restless Dreams

Your Thoughts
''Whether you were a fellow handler in SOTF or just an avid reader of the site, we'd like to know what you thought about Sierra Manning. What did you like, or dislike, about the character? Let us know here!''
 * Oh, Sierra. Sierra and Josie were two of my favorite characters in pregame, especially in their last thread there. One thing Mimi really nailed was making Sierra feel real. I cared what happened to her, because she felt like somebody I could have gone to school with, maybe not somebody I'd've been close friends with or even have noticed that much, but someone there. She was nice, but not in an unrealistically angelic fashion. She was strong, but only sometimes. Sierra had limits and emotions, ups and downs, and throughout all that her friendship with Josie kept her on course. She was a great character, and very deservedly drew attention for that.

There are only a few things I can even say that aren't glowingly positive. The first is, I really really wish Sierra and Omar had gotten more time together onscreen, especially in pregame. Their relationship is a big motivating factor for both of them, yet we never get much of a feel for it, and that's especially glaring when compared to the super believable friendship between Sierra and Josie. Omar coming between them doesn't feel quite natural, because while we know why Sierra and Josie stick together, we don't know how Omar could threaten that. The other complaint, of course, is activity. Sierra's death was beautifully handled, but I wish it could've come a bit later. It always hurts when characters I'm emotionally invested in die, and I think Sierra had potential for more, but Chelsea gave her a very good sendoff. - MurderWeasel